Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-12-15
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
sALUrArIOS FROM THE CHARIOT.
The Searching Question: 'Is Thine
Heart Rightn

With mettled horses at fuu speed, Tor ne
was celebrated for fast driving, Jehu, the
warrior and king, returns from battle. But
peeing Jehonadab. an acquaintance, by the
wayside, he shouts "Whoal whoal" TO the
lathered span. Then, leaning over to Jehon-
adab, Jehu salautes him in the words of the
text-words not more appropriate for that
hour and that place than for this hour and
place.
Is thine heart right should like to hear
of your physical health. Well mysslf, / like
to have everybody else we'll; and so might
ask: Is your eyesight right, your hearing
right, your nerves right, your lungs right,
your entire body right But am busy to-
day taking diagnosis Of the more important
spiritual conditions
should like to hear of your financial well
fare. want everybody TO have plenty Of
money, ample apparel, large storehouse, and
comfortable residence And might ask: Is
your business right, your income right your
worldly surroundings rghti But what are
these financial questions compared with the
inquiry as to whether you have been able to
pay your debts to God; as to whether you
are running yourself by the long credit sys-
tenn of the souli have known men to have
no more than one Loaf of bread at time, and
yet to own government bond or heaven
worth more than the whole material uni
verse.
The question ! ask you to-day is not in re-
kdIu W yOuI uhaho AiO AA4AhJ
about your integrity, or your chastity, or
your sobriety. do not mean to stand on
the outside Of the gate and ring the bell; but
coming up the steps l open the door and
come to the private apartment OF the soul;
and with the earnestness OF a man that must
give an account for this days work, ! cry
out: 80 man, o woman immortal, is thine
heart rightP'
will not insult you by an argument to
prove that we are by nature all wrong. II
There be factory explosion and the smoke
stack be upset. and the wheels be broken in
two. and the engine unjointed, and the pom
derous bars be twisted, and man should
look in and say that nothing was the matter,
yon would pronounce him fool Well, it
needs no acumen to discover that our nature
Is all a-Eist and askew and uniointed. The
thing doesn't work right. The bi tgest trouble
we have in the world is with our souls
Men sometimes say that though their fveS
may not be just right, their heart is all right
Impossblel A farmer never puts the poorest
apples on top of his barrel; nor does the lner-
chant place the meanest goods in his show
window. The best part Of us is our outward
life. do not stop to discuss whether we all
fell in Adam, for we have been our own
Adam, and have all eaten of the forbidden
fruit, and have been turned ont Of the para
disc OF holiness and peace; and though the
Maming sword that stood at the gate to keep
to drive US in, we will not go.
The Bible account Of us is not exaggerated
when it says that we are poor and wretched
and miserable and blind and naked. Poor:
Ehe wretch that stands shivoring on our door
step on a cold day is not SO much in need Of
bread as we are Of spiritual help. Blind:
why, the man whose eyes Ierished in the
powder blast, and who for these ten years
has gone feeling his way from street to street,
ds not in such utter darkness as we. Naked:
why, there is not one rag of holiness left to
hide the shame of our sin. Sick: why, the
1eprosy has eaten into the head and the heart
and the hands and the feet, and the maras-
mus of an everlasting wasting away has al
ready seized on some Of u.s.
First we need arepenting heart II for the
last ten, twenty or forty years Of life we have
been going on in the wrong way it is time
that we turned around and started in the
opposite direction. II we offend our friends
we are glad to apologize. God is our best
friend, and yet how many of us have never
apologized for the wrongs wehave done Himl
There is nothing that we so much need to
get rid of as sin. 1t is horrible black mon
ster. It polluted Eden. It killed Christ. 1t
has blasted the world. Men keep dogs in
kennels, and rabbits in a warren, and cattle
IN a pen. What man that would be who
would shut them up In his parlor. But this
foul dog Of sin, and these herds of transgres-
asion, we have entertained for many long
year in our heart, which should be the clean
4est, brightest room In all our nature. Out
with the vile herdl Beyone, ye befoulers of
an immortal naturel Turn out the beasts
and let Christ come ini
/ d heathen came to an early Christian who
had the reputation Of curing diseases. The
christian said: "You must have all your idols
destroyed The heathen gave to the Chris
ttian the key to his house, that he might go in
land destroy the idols He battered to pieces
all he saw, but still the man did not get well,
Mhe Christian said to him: There must be
some idol In your house not yet destroyed. "
THE heathen confessed that there was one idol
Of beaten gold that he could not bear to give
up. After while when that was destroyed,
In answer to the prayer of the Christian the
sick man got well.
MANY a man has awakened in his dying
fhour to find his sins all about him. They
,clambered up on the right side OF the bed
on the left side and over the headboard, anc
vOver the footboard, and horribly dsvoured
Ethe soul.
Repent the voice celestial cries,
The oT Wretch that ua's scorns the mandate dies
And meets fiery day.
Again, we need believing heart. A gooc
many years ago weary one went up one o
the hills Of Asia Minor, and with two logs or
his back cried out to all the world. offering
to carry their sins and sorrows. They pur
sued him They slapped him in the face
They Knocked him. When he groaned they
groaned They shook their fists at him
They spit on him. They bounded him a!
though he were wild beast. His healing Q
che sick, his sight giving to the blind, hi
mercy to the outcast silenced not the reveng
of the world. His prayers and benedictlon'
were lost in that whirlwind OF execration
Away with himl Away with himl
Ali it was not merely the two pieces
wood that he carried; it was the transgres
gions OF the race, the anguish OF the ages, tn
wrath of God, the sorrows OF hell, the stu
Dendous interests OF an unending eternity
No wonder his back bent. No wonder tn
blood started from every pore No wonde
ttbat he crouched under q torture that mad
che sun faint, and the everlasting hills trenl
BILE, and the dead rush up in their windin
sheets as he cried, II 1t be possible, let thi
cup pass from me-" But the cup old nc
pass. None to comfort.
There he hangsl What has that hand don
that il should be thus crushed in th
palmf It has been healing the lame an
wiping away tears What has that foot bee
doing that it should be SO lacerateds II ha
been going about doing good. Of what ha
the victim been guiltya Guilty OF saving
world. Tell me, ye heavens and earth, wa
there ever such another criminal2 Was thel
ever such a crimel On that hill Of carnage
chat sunless day, amid those bowling rioters
may not your sins and mine have perishet
dbelieve it.
Oh, the ransom has been paid Thos
arms Of Jesus were stretched out so wif
that when He brought them togethe
again they might embrace the worlt
Oh, that might, out Of the blossom
- l.. iiAr.. daaua Enyf yfAn